Bathroom by five-star hotel, curtains inspired by Madrid. Zdeněk Kolařík furnishes his home thanks to the help of his former partner
How long has this apartment been your home? And do you live here alone or with someone? What about any pets?
When I chose this apartment, it was just a meadow or a hill. Then I waited two years for the developer to build the building. I lived here alone, then with a friend, and now alone again. I don't have any pets at the moment and I've lived here for ten years.
How big is the apartment?
It's a 2-bedroom. I have a combined kitchen with a living room and dining room and then there is a small bedroom. I'm completely happy here as an individual and I love my living situation. I'm 100% happy because everything is just the way I wanted it.
What made you choose this then fledgling project?
I was living with an ex-boyfriend not far from here on the Harp. After we broke up, we sold the apartment and I wanted to stay in the same area. I stuck with it and it met all my requirements. There are two subway stations, tram stops, and the accessibility to downtown is absolutely great. Twelve minutes by car, you're in Wenceslas Square. It's actually the wider centre of Prague itself. Plus, Vysočany is booming as a location. Of course, there are still a lot of industrial areas, brownfields, but they are changing over time and I enjoy watching the whole area develop for the better.
When you took over the place, was the apartment at the stage of white walls and you arranged and invented everything in your own way? Or did you come in partially furnished? What did it look like?
I took over the apartment completely bare because we still had a requirement that there shouldn't even be a bathroom. I wanted to make it my own. My ex-boyfriend has a design studio and has been in the business for a long time, so he helped me tweak everything.
Let's stop with the bathroom. What was your idea?
I actually have a completely turnkey bathroom. I wanted it just the way I wanted it - big and with a shower. The way it was designed by the developer didn't suit me. Originally, there was supposed to be a closet in the hallway, but I preferred to enlarge the bathroom by that space. And the design is in materials that imitate nature - stone or wood. I also have the dryer and washing machine hidden in the cabinet by the sink. I was inspired at the time by the Four Seasons, which has beautiful bathrooms. I travel a lot and hotels are often my models for interior design.
Is practicality a priority for you? Do you like everything to have its place?
I'm a minimalist. That's why even in the hallway, I just have this big built-in wardrobe, which actually replaced a discontinued pantry. It makes the space look simple and clean. I can fit everything in here - from my clothes to my vacuum cleaner.
About two years ago I upgraded the place - I painted and there's new wallpaper, which I'm absolutely smitten with.
This wallpaper continues into the living room. It's all in green. Is that your favourite interior colour?
Not really. Actually, I don't know. But the fact is, I've had green in here before, just different. Everything in here is matched to go with each other, just the wallpaper. If you look, it changes colour at different angles, it's got different textures. I matched the furniture and accessories to make the space cohesive.
But I see you're not much of a minimalist when it comes to accessories. But you do have a striking photo image on the wall. And I also see photography books on the coffee table under the TV...
I enjoy photography. The picture on the wall is a work of art by photographer Martin Stránka. I really like it, and it's a beautiful colour scheme.
If you look at the ceiling, I also chose the light so that I could adjust not only the color of the light, but also where the points were pointing. I just pointed one of them at the photo image to make it stand out.
The next photo I put up is of a flea market in Vysočany. I took that photo. You basically wouldn't recognize the place today because it's already built up and there's a tall office building and new apartments. It's a beautiful area.
I also put up a picture of my family and I also like the Buddha statues, even though I'm not religious. I like them as an interior design element.
Was the balcony important to you? I see you have a seating area set up...
I wanted an apartment with either a front garden or a beautiful view. The project I live in didn't have a front garden, but I think I have a beautiful view - of the whole of Prague. I've winterized it now, but in the summer there are flowers in boxes and a big, beautiful creeper crawls up the wall around my windows.
The kitchen, I see, is very simple, but beautiful. Do you cook?
I usually order food. I don't enjoy cooking for one. But I have a new oven that I'm very happy with. The important thing for me is that I don't have a lot of stuff on the counter. I like the kitchen to look very clean and uncluttered.
But I see you have a working wine cabinet...
Yes, it works. (laughs) I have a lot of friends and we meet here a lot.
When we move into the bedroom, you can't help but notice another distinctive wallpaper. And more photographs...
Yes, I have photos of my family in the bedroom too. I'll be adding more with friends as time goes on, because I'm a very social person.
Rest is essential, especially if you have a demanding job. What did you choose the bed based on?
The bed is big, it could sleep three people. I got it new: I wanted a big mattress, not two smaller ones, because the gap between them on the original bed was a problem. I like big American beds.
Is there anything you are planning to change or improve in the apartment now?
What I would like to change are the blinds. I'm going to get blackout curtains instead. I don't sleep well here when I'm coming from a party and there's too much light in the summer, for example. I was in Madrid recently and the hotel there had just such heavy curtains, and not a ray of light could get through. I liked that very much and I slept beautifully there. So that's something I would bring here to my home as further inspiration for a hotel room.
